Two rescued from Superior

April 22, 2013

MARQUETTE - Marquette City Fire Department swimmers rescued two high-school-aged boys from Lake Superior Friday evening after a chunk of ice the two were walking on broke away near the mouth of the Carp River.

Fire department crews were called out at 8:46 p.m. by the mother of one of the boys, who fire officials said was in a vehicle at the scene.

Fire officials said both boys were taken to Marquette General Hospital with minor hypothermia.

The two boys had reportedly been walking along the shoreline, looking at the waves, which were pushed up by high winds into a pounding surf. A piece of ice the two were walking on broke away and drifted out into Lake Superior.

As the ice floe moved farther from shore, the size of the ice chunk began to break up, continually getting smaller. One fire official said it started out about as big as a dump truck, but ended up being a piece of ice the size of a Volkswagen Beetle.

Swimmers were tethered and headed into the water to retrieve the two boys. The ice floe drifted out about 50 yards from shore, fire officials said.

Several agencies aided in the recovery including the Marquette City Police Department, the Marquette County Sheriff's Office, Medi-Ride, Marquette General and the U.S. Coast Guard.